


On Watch

by BardicLesbian



Category: Curse of Strahd - Fandom, Dungeons & Dragons (Roleplaying Game), Original Work
Genre: F/F, First Time, Fluff, Smut
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-29
Updated: 2018-06-29
Packaged: 2019-05-30 15:08:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,517
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15099323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BardicLesbian/pseuds/BardicLesbian
Summary: Ireena talks with her crush, Raeem, during nightly watch and things escalate quickly.





	On Watch

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was written at the request of my girlfriend for the Curse of Strahd campaign we are both in. Raeem is a half-elf paladin of Sarenrae and a badass, and this was an good excuse to write these two rad ladies together.

Ireena knew she should sleep. The plan was to leave Vallaki as soon as the sun rose, and chances were this would be the last night any of them would get the chance to sleep in an actual bed for a while. But instead she spent the last several hours tossing and turning before giving up on sleep all together. Boredom or nerves, she wasn’t sure, but either way she found herself staring at the wall for lack of anything better to do. The group insisted on getting Ismark and her a room without a window. It was safer she supposed, but Ireena hated not being able to see outside, even if it would just be pitch black at this time of night. It felt like she was being locked away at times. As if she didn’t get enough of that from her brother already.

Even without the window she could hear the storm still raging. Every now and then the Inn would creak, old wood bending and then settling back against the stone foundation. Idly Ireena tried to imagine what a new building would feel like, what it looks and sounds like. She was quick to give up though, frustrated to find that she couldn’t even bring to mind anything that felt ‘new’, building or otherwise. Everything in Barovia felt ancient, in a hollow, stubborn sort of way. Even the people felt that way. Well, at least some of the people. She learned recently that not everyone was like that.

Despite Ismark’s low snoring mixed with the muffled sounds of the storm, Ireena was able to catch the sound of movement outside. Just the changing of the watch, she told herself, angry that she could feel her heart rate pick up. Even here it felt like he could just walk in if he truly pleased. Ireena moved from her bed, moving quietly so as to not wake Ismark. The last thing she wanted was for him to give her a lecture about wandering around. If she was the reason everyone was forced to stand watch and she couldn’t sleep anyway, the least she could do was keep them company. 

The door didn’t make much noise but the tall silhouette of a figure leaning against the wall directly outside her door almost made Ireena let out a yelp. The figure seemed to jump slightly as well.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I thought the best place to watch would be out here.”

Ireena’s eyes began adjust to the faint lantern light of the hallway, not that she needed to see to recognize the figure now that it spoke. Raeem was standing against opposite wall. She was dressed down from her armor, but her sword and shield lay next to her, ready in case they were needed. 

“It’s fine,” Ireena said with a smile. It was silly, considering everyone was mostly doing watch for her sake, but it felt particularly nice to know the paladin was right there if Ireena needed her. Closing the door softly behind her, Ireena scooted up next to Raeem.

“Mind if I keep you company? I can’t seem to sleep.”

“Of course. Are you feeling alright?” Raeem sat down cross legged on the floor and Ireena followed suit.

“I’m fine,” Ireena said with a shrug. “Guess the storm was just keeping me up.” It wasn’t exactly the truth, but she felt guilty about everything being about her.

“Even if we slept through it I’m sure Sarinn would tell us all about it tomorrow. Even if we asked him not to.” Raeem looked almost guilty about the joke even as she smirked. 

Ireena’s laugh came out as more of a snort. She sent an embarrassed glance over at Raeem, the heat flooding to her cheeks not being helped by the amused look Raeem was giving her.

“Hey, you're allowed to make fun of Sarinn all you want, but not me.”

“I’m sorry,” Raeem’s smile fell, replaced by a genuinely apologetic look.

“It’s fine.” Ireena went to playfully knock her shoulder against Raeem’s, but chickened out at the last second. Instead she just awkwardly rocked in her seat before diverting her eyes away from Raeem. “Ismark used to tease me about it when we were kids so you two better not gang up on me if it happens again.”

Ireena fiddled with a bit of string at the edge of her shirt sleeve. Growing up in the village hadn’t exactly lent itself to learning much in the ways of conversational skills. There weren’t many people her age besides Ismark in the village, and most of her time was spent in the mansion with either him or her father. It was a fact that Ireena was becoming increasingly more aware of since she and Raeem began talking one on one more. 

“I thought it was cute,” Raeem said, soft enough that Ireena wondered if she was even meant to hear it. Either way, it was hard for Ireena to hide the smile pulling at her lips.

Quiet stretched between them for a few moments. It wasn’t quite awkward, more just a comfortable silence, but Ireena wasn’t good at reading these things so she attempted to break it.

“Are you happy to leave Vallaki?”

“We’ve done what we can here and found what we needed, so I think it's good to move on.”

Ireena nodded, “So we’re heading south next, right?”

“Yeah, down towards that mansion we heard about. There’s probably a good chance that something else we need will be there.”

“That makes sense.”

Despite traveling with Raeem and her friends for almost as long as they’ve been in Barovia, everything the party did still felt completely out of her league. While they seemed happy to protect her, they were also going off to fight and search for things that felt so much bigger than just her. She couldn’t help feeling guilty at the idea that she was holding them back. Or that she was selfish enough to still want to stay with them despite that. 

“Are you sure you’re fine?” Ireena glanced at Raeem to see a look of concern in her eyes. “You seem like you have something on your mind.”

Why did she have to be so perceptive and nice? Ireena slumped further down against the wall.

“I guess I’m feeling kinda selfish.”

Raeem raised brow, “Selfish how?”

“Because I know you and everyone are trying to get home and you have all these grand things you are trying to do. And sometimes I just sort of feel...just there. Like I’m weighing everyone down.”

Raeem smile, reassuring as always. “You’re not weighing anyone down. Everyone likes being around you, and we want you to be safe because you’re our friend.” Raeem’s voice was warm, and Ireena was tempted to just let the topic drop there. But she had to get this out now before she lost her courage. 

Eyes avoiding Raeem’s face, Ireena rushed to get the words out. “I know, you keep saying that. And I’m glad that everyone likes me but that doesn’t mean I’m not being selfish. I know Vallaki isn’t safe for me to stay in, so I’m coming with you, but sometimes I feel bad because...” Ireena finally glanced up at Raeem’s face, gentle and focused on Ireena’s words.

“Because I’m glad? I’m glad that Vallaki wasn’t safe because now I’m not stuck here and I get to be with you...and everyone. But that’s selfish. It would be safer if you could just leave me somewhere, and maybe one day you will, but I wish I could just stay with you...”

Ireena trailed off, energy leaving her words. It sounded so dumb and childish now that it was out there. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Raeem’s face, afraid it would just be full of pity.

“Ireena.” She hated how many butterflies filled her stomach just from hearing Raeem say her name. “We aren’t going to just drop you off somewhere, I promise. And not just for your safety. Everyone-”

“What about you?” Ireena blurted without thinking, eyes catching a glimpse of Raeem’s confusion before she trained her eyes back at the floor.

“What do you mean?”

“I like the group, I consider you all my friends, but...” Ireena bit at her lip, hating that Raeem’s reassurance was exactly what she needed to hear, and yet she wanted more than what Raeem said. “I like you, more than everyone else. It sounds really dumb, but you are a really nice person and I guess, I wanted to know if you liked me, beyond just the group.”

Forcing herself to look up at Raeem’s face again, Ireena found that it was hard to read. Anxiety getting the better of her, Ireena moved to get up, only for Raeem to put a hand on her arm and then quickly remove it. But the gesture was enough to make her stay.

Raeem opened her mouth just as the the sound of creaking wood caused the two women to jump.

“Watch is over you two.” Thallin said, emerging from the doorway next to them. Ireena’s face grew hot at the knowing smirk the old woman was giving them. Without saying anything, Raeem picked up her sword and shield and headed to her own room, sending a questioning glance back at Ireena. 

“Mind if we keep talking?” Ireena hurried over to Raeem, hoping Thallin’s age affected her hearing.

“Of course,” Raeem said, holding the door open for Ireena to enter. Ireena caught Thallin remark something as Raeem closed the door behind her. Sounded like ‘have fun’? Ireena didn’t want to linger too much on it. 

The room was just like her and Ismark’s, two beds pressed up against opposite walls with a small table and two chairs in between. This one had a window though, showing the heavy storm that was raging outside. Technically this room was rented to be Sarinn’s as well, but the dragonborn had decided to sleep outside in the rain for some reason. Unsure where to sit, Ireena chose a bed at random and sat at the edge.

“Do you... mind me being in here?” Ireena asked, realizing with a flip of her stomach that she could very well be sitting on Raeem’s bed right now.

“No, you are fine,” the paladin said as she sat in one of the wooden chairs a few feet away. 

“Was that weird for me to say?” Ireena tried to keep eye contact with Raeem but kept finding her eyes darting back to her feet.

“No, I was just surprised...”

“Surprised that I like you?” Ireena questioned. It had seemed glaringly obvious to herself, to the point where she worried that the paladin may already have known.

“I’m...still not sure what you mean by that.” Raeem’s voice sounded more unsure than Ireena had ever heard before.

Well, Ireena had already jumped head first into this, might as well make a bigger ass of herself.

“I like you a lot. As in...differently than the rest of the group.” Ireena bit at her lip again. She knew the feeling but felt foggy on how to explain it.

Raeem’s face was still hard to read, but still had a gentleness to it that eased some of Ireena’s tension. After a moment of silence, Raeem spoke.

“I like you too. You’re unique, and I’m glad that I meet you.”

Ireena felt like if she opened her mouth again to respond, only butterflies would come out. She tried to read Raeem’s face, see if she was lying, but all she found was the same warmth as before in her eyes, albeit with a nervous edge to them. 

“Glad to know the cute paladin I like feels the same way.” Ireena said, a small smile spreading on her face.

Raeem’s body stiffened slightly at Ireena’s words.

“Sorry, was that too much?”

“No, just...surprising.”

Raeem smiled, soft and kind in a way that made it hard for Ireena not to grin at her. Content to just look at her, Ireena sat quietly and enjoyed the way the flickering candle light danced on Raeem’s face, how it caught the gold of the pendent around the paladin’s neck that was normally hidden under her armor. Some sort of symbol for a god Ireena didn’t know.

“I’m not keeping you up or anything, am I?”

Raeem motioned to the table, where the single candle was burning next to a small prayer book. Not Raeem’s, one of the ones that belonged to the inn. 

“I wasn’t sleeping much either,” Raeem said, smiling.

Some strange sort of boldness was infecting Ireena, and she reached to hold Raeem’s hand. Raeem let her, letting it lay limp in Ireena’s hand as she ran her fingers over the smooth calloused surface.  
“It feels silly.” Ireena said as she brushed her fingers over Raeems wrist and then back down her palm, enjoying the slight shiver she felt in Raeem’s arm as she did.

“What does?”

“Liking you as much as I do in such a short time. Does it bother you?”

“Not at all, it’s... nice to know that you feel the same.”

There was a slight tension building in the space between them. And while Ireena could take a wild guess about what it meant for herself, something felt off about the stillness of Raeem’s body. It felt like she was forcing herself to be statue like, to let Ireena hold her hand but keep every muscle of her body still and her face even. Ireena worried for a moment she was crossing some sort of line, but the tension in Raeem’s body didn’t seem like one of discomfort. Ireena was new to this, unsure of what to do or say, but she felt that if she didn’t do something, they would continue to sit there in silence. Not uncomfortable, but not what Ireena wanted. 

Ireena leaned towards Raeem, hoping that her boldness was leading her on the right path. She closed her eyes and let her lip brush Raeem’s. It was brief kiss, so light that it almost didn’t feel real. But Ireena’s stomach had turned itself in knots as she pulled away, glancing to see Raeem’s reaction.

“Was that okay?”

Raeem was still sitting stiffly in her chair, her face hard to read.

“I’m sorry, I should have asked.” Ireena’s excited energy deflated in an instant as Raeem sat there in silence. She moved to let go of Raeem’s hand, only for the paladin’s strong grip to keep it in place.

“Are you okay with this?”

Ireena blinked in confusion at Raeem’s question. Seeing the confusion on her face, Raeem continued.

“I don’t want to be too forward, or assume, or do something that-”

“It’s fine.” Ireena squeezed Raeem’s hand, relieved that this wasn’t about Ireena making Raeem uncomfortable. “I wouldn’t have kissed you if I didn’t want to. I like you a lot. You’re good and I trust you.”  
There was a strange flicker in Raeem’s eye as Ireena finished, but she didn’t say anything.

“Can I kiss you again?” Ireena asked, as she leaned forward slightly.

“Yes.”

When their lips met again Raeem kissed back softly. Ireena shivered. She’d deny that she had daydream about this before. There was something so gentle and tentative about how Raeem kissed that made her feel almost light headed.

She wasn’t sure how long they had been kissing like this, but it felt too soon when Raeem pulled way. Still holding Raeem’s hand, Ireena gave it a soft squeeze.

“You’re a good kisser,” she said quietly, causing to Raeem to chuckle lightly.

“You are too.” The paladin brushed her thumb back and forth over the back of Ireena’s hand.

“Will you sit with me?” Ireena asked, still wanting more between them but unsure if she was asking to much.

Raeem stiffened a bit again, but nodded. “I’d like that.”

She moved to sit next to Ireena at the edge of the bed, the old wooden frame letting out a groan of protest at their combined weight. Ireena wanted to be as tentative as Raeem, but found herself impatiently moving her lips back to the paladin’s, not that Raeem seemed bothered. Now that they were on the bed together, Ireena had the chance to actually touch her. She carefully moved her free hand from Raeem’s knee, to her arm, then finally to her shoulder. 

It was hard to tell who quickened the kiss, maybe they both had. Either way the room suddenly seemed much warmer than before as Ireena gently nipped at Raeem’s lip, earning a low moan. Ireena hadn’t even noticed Raeem’s hands on her hips until she felt their grip tightening

Ireena explored as much as she could of Raeem the way they were now, running her fingers through her straight hair, running her hands up her back. She felt Raeem shiver as she ran her fingers across the paladin’s collarbone. Ireena filed the information away for later as they pulled away to catch their breath.

Both were breathing heavier than Ireena expected. But the intense look Ireena found waiting in Raeem’s dark eyes sent a shiver down her spine. How could her eyes be so warm yet so hungry, like she want to devour her? She noticed then that the hands at her waist were becoming more fidgety, tugging lightly at the edge of Ireena’s nightshirt, curious but cautious.

Ireena moved one of her hands over Raeem’s, bringing it up to kiss the back of it. “I really like this,” she said, surprised by the roughness in her own voice. “I..want you to touch me.”

Raeem let out a shaky breath as Ireena lead Raeem’s hand just under her shirt. The paladin barely started to move her hand across Ireena’s and she was already having trouble keeping still, shivering at the paladin’s callused hands on her. 

“Is this okay?” Raeem was still nervous but her voice rough, eyes watching her own hand move under Ireena’s shirt.

“Mhmm” Ireena hummed, slightly embarrassed at how breathless her voice already sounded. Raeem seemed to find it amusing, letting out a husky laugh that made Ireena’s stomach flip.

When Raeem’s hands finally made it up to her chest, Ireena couldn’t hold back a moan. Her fingers brushed over the skin before squeezing lightly, brushing over Ireena’s nipples with a frustrating level of lightness. 

“May I take this off?” Raeem asked, voice shaking with a mix of nerves and arousal. Ireena nodded, afraid her voice would crack if she tried to speak. She held her arms up to help Raeem bring her night shirt over her head. It was hard not to be nervous under the paladin’s gaze. Raeem’s hand ran up Ireena’s body before settling against the side over her neck. It lingered, half against her jaw, thumb over the hollow of her neck. A shaky breath left Raeem’s mouth as her hand moved away from cupping Ireena’s face to tangle in her hair, moving forward for another kiss. 

“You’re so beautiful,” Raeem murmured against Ireena’s lips before pulling away. Raeem’s eyes were wider almost, full of an awe that made Ireena whole body flush.

“Thank you,” Ireena replied, her voice trailing off into a sigh as Raeem ran her hand through her hair and moved to her ear to nibble sightly. “You’re amazing.”

Raeem continued to kiss, moving across her cheeks and then back to her lips. The paladin moved to kiss her jawline then dipped down to her neck. Ireena froze suddenly, hand jerking up without forethought to push Raeem’s head away. The confusion and alarm plastered across Raeem’s face made Ireena guiltily turn away as Raeem backed up. 

“I’m sorry, did I do something wrong?” The shake in Raeem’s voice sent a pang through Ireena’s heart. “Do you want to stop?”

Ireena shook her head, feeling a bit shaky as well for the wrong reasons. 

“You’re fine, it wasn't your fault,” Ireena said, placing a comforting hand on Raeem’s. “Just... avoid my neck, okay?”

Raeem nodded, but stayed still, avoiding eye contact. Ireena moved forward to place a light kiss at the corner of Raeem mouth.

“I’d like to touch you.”

Raeem nodded. “I’d like that too.”

Ireena moved slowly, kissing Raeem’s tension away. Ireena tugged lightly at Raeem’s undershirt until the paladin broke away from the kiss and quickly brought it over her head. Despite how quickly Raeem removed her shirt, she seemed just as nervous about being undressed in front of Ireena as Ireena had felt undressing herself. 

“Again,” Ireena said, brushing her hand over Raeem’s stomach and enjoying how the muscles twitched under her touch, “You’re amazing.” 

She took a while just feeling the stomach and then moved up her arms. There was something incredibly sexy about how strong Raeem was compared to how gentle she was being. Raeem stroked Ireena’s hair, scratching her scalp lightly with her nails. It wasn’t fair that even when Ireena was touching her, the paladin still made her shiver. 

She finally moved her hand to cup Raeem’s breasts, enjoying the sharp intake of breath that followed after she squeezed them. Curious, Ireena pinched lightly at Raeem’s nipple. Instantly, Ireena heard a moan and yelped as her hair was tugged roughly. 

“I’m sorry!”

“No, it’s okay!” Ireena didn’t expect herself to be so breathless over something like this. “Actually...could you do it again?”

Raeem gave her a questioning look, but gave another, more gentle tug at Ireena’s hair. Ireena bit her lip, suppressing another gasp. 

“Do you like that?” Raeem asked, an honest question, even with a hint of pride in her voice. When Ireena nodded, Raeem returned to kissing her in earnest, other hand returning to roaming over Ireena’s body while Ireena did the same to her.

Ireena giggled as short nails tickled up her sides. She didn’t intend to pull Raeem down on top of her. Well, maybe part of her did. Either way, as she squirmed away from Raeem’s tickling touch, she ended up leaning back and pulling Raeem down with her. 

Ireena let out a breathless laugh as she looked up at the paladin who smiled back down at her.

“I like having you on top of me.” she whispered as she rose slightly up to kiss Raeem. Raeem’s moan almost sounded like a growl, her kisses becoming stronger, more aggressive. Apparently she liked this too, if the slight pressure of her grinding down of Ireena’s thigh meant anything. It was hard for Ireena to focus on where to put her hand, overwhelmed by the pressure of having Raeem on top of her and the feel of their bare chest pressed together.

“I want to touch you.” Ireena’s voice was hoarse, almost desperate. 

Raeem hugged at Ireena’s hair as she spoke. “After I touch you.” The commanding edge in her gentle voice sending sparks through Ireena. “I want you underneath me.”

Ireena didn’t dare to hesitate after that, moved her hand down from Raeem’s back to her own pants, lifting her hips to help Raeem pull them down. Her lack of underwear was merely due to having been traveling with limited clothing for almost a week, but Raeem didn’t need to know that. Raeem’s eyes were focused, hungry, as she ran her hand over Ireena’s lower stomach and thighs, watching as Ireena squirmed under her touch.

“Please,” Ireena practically whimpered, spreading her legs wider in hopes that Raeem would take the hint. She did, running her hand gently through the reddish brown curls before finally touching Ireena. Ireena moaned, burying her head into Raeem’s neck. Raeem was gentle, barely touching her at all, and Ireena wondered briefly if Raeem could guess that this was her first time being touched like this.  
It was hard to focus on thinking though when Raeem fingers began to become more exploratory. They ran through her lips, finding how wet she was before finding her clit. Ireena’s hips bucked up at light brush of Raeem finger over the hood. She added more pressure and settle into a circular motion on her clit as her smooth voice filled Ireena’s ears. The paladin half whispered, half moaned, words of praise, bits of words from a language she didn’t understand, at times it sounded like a prayer.

She wanted desperately to say something back, return the praise she was receiving. Explain how good it felt to be held like this, safe and warm in Raeem’s arms as the paladin touched her. But words were failing her, turning into nothing but gasps and fragments of Raeem’s name. So Ireena curled into Raeem, trying to bring their bodies as close together as physically possible. If she could have this last forever she would, she would stay here and listen to Raeem’s voice and feel the strong muscles over her arm move as her movement grew stronger, quicker. But she couldn’t last any longer. And when Raeem said her name again, full of such wonder and adoration, she was gone.

She tried to muffle her cries in Raeem’s neck as she shook, Raeem’s hand still moving until the sensation was too much that Ireena had to move her hand away. Then everything was still. Ireena lay there panting, curling up into the warmth of Raeem’s arms. When she could finally move enough to look at Raeem, the paladin was staring at her, eyes wide and adoring. 

Raeem rolled onto her side, letting Ireena leave gentle kisses against her face. She wished she had something she could say, something heartfelt and poetic to let Raeem know how much she cared for her. Instead she just kissed her, long and tender. She hoped the paladin understood.

“I want to touch you too,” Ireena said with an slightly embarrassed laugh once the glow lifted enough for her to find words, “but you kinda wore me out.”  
Raeem stroked her head. “We can do more some other time, if you want.”

“I want.” Ireena murmured as she snuggled closer.

For a moment as Ireena drifted in and out of sleep, Raeem’s eyes seemed almost hazy and far away. The paladin stroked a hand through Ireena’s hair, then found its way back down to cup her jaw. When her hand reached Ireena’s neck, it cupped the side, palm covering the scars of the bite mark, slight pressure being placed there like it wanted to stop the bleeding of a wound. It only seemed to last a second thought, because when Ireena opened her eyes again, Raeem’s hand was back in her hair and her eyes were lidded and adoring.

Ireena didn’t want to sleep just yet, almost afraid that if she did, she’d wake up to find this had just been a vivid dream. Ireena shifted in Raeem’s arms, tucking her head under the paladin’s chin.

“I want to know more about you” she said, enjoying the feeling of Raeem shiver her as breath brushed over Raeem’s neck. “Um, would it be weird to ask you about your god after we just had sex?”  
Raeem laughed.

“Ask me anything you want.”


End file.
